Destination Netherlands: Amsterdam

 Amsterdam is celebrating the 750th anniversary of its founding in 2025.

750 years old 

I recently spent five days in the Dutch city of about 925,000 residents and found it easy to navigate, friendly, and charming. It's cosmopolitan, home to 180 nationalities although about half the population is of indigenous Dutch origin. I found it to be a colorful, and perhaps underrated, city to discover because of its rich history and diverse cultures. About 90 percent speak English, making it easy for this American to communicate with its citizens. At times, when in shops and restaurants, I almost forgot I was in a foreign country until I looked at the signage, menus, magazines, and other printed matter. But during my brief stay, I learned a few words (straat for street, hallo for hello, etc.).

Bike racks 

Bicycles are one of the first things you'll notice. They're everywhere and they rule the roadway. Pedestrians have to watch their step or they'll get beeped at or run over. I got beeped once, along with a dirty look from a woman, for inadvertently getting in her path. You learn early to look both ways before walking across a bike path. You'll see bikes with front carriers to transport children and goods. There are regular bikes, electric bikes, tricycles, and scooters zipping along the streets. And bike racks are everywhere.

One of many canals

Amsterdam is nearly as famous for its canals as Venice, Italy. One hundred sixty-five canals cross the flat-surfaced city, providing an interesting way for tourists to gain a historical perspective of how it changed through the years. By the way, Venice has 150 canals. Hamburg, Germany, has the most in Europe with more than 2,500.

Let me add that Amsterdam has an excellent transportation system, aside from boats and bikes, with buses, trams, and taxis.

Van Gogh Museum 

If you're into museums, Amsterdam has 85 that cover everything from houseboats to sex to microbes to botany. My visit included stops at the famous Van Gogh Museum and the impressive Rijksmuseum, the national museum of the Netherlands that also houses a few Rembrandt paintings.  They are located on a large campus called the Museum Square that includes the Stedelijk and Moco museums. You could spend a week or more exploring the treasures.

Holocaust names 

Another place to see is the National Holocaust Names Memorial, which commemorates the approximately 102,000 Jewish victims of the Holocaust from 1940-45 during the German regime. The names are printed on bricks, showing the date of birth and death.  Not far from the memorial is the Anne Frank House. I would advise ordering tickets about 4-6 weeks in advance of a visit to the home where Anne and her family hid from the Nazis for 25 months before they were found and deported to a concentration camp.

Royal Palace 

I also went to Dam Square, known as "the Dam," which contains the Koninklijk Palace (17th-century royal palace) and the National Monument that honors Dutch soldiers in World War II. I was disappointed because I thought the square would be more regal. But there is renovation going on that perhaps will return it to its former glory as the heart of the city. A short distance away is the architecturally impressive Central Station, a Neo-Renaissance building opened in 1889.

I've only touched on a few things to see in Amsterdam. It's a great city to explore if you're an urban hiker (or biker). I also made a trip to Royal Flora Holland, the largest marketplace for flowers in the world (it handles about 100,000 transactions per day) and the Keukenhof Gardens, known as the "Garden of Europe" with its countless varieties of tulips and other flowers planted on 79 acres. More on those places in another post.

I also saw a few iconic windmills when venturing into the scenic countryside. 

Until the next time...